Youngstown, Ohio, 10/22/12 – Youngstown’s beautiful, historic Mill Creek Park is facing the threat of fracking and gas and oil drilling. Park commissioners are having public meetings to gather information to help them decide whether or not to greenlight fracking in Mill Creek Park.

Concerned citizens of Frackfree Mahoning Valley and Guardians of Mill Creek Park are urging the public to attend an important public meeting on October 25, 2012, at Mill Creek MetroParks Farm 7574 Columbiana-Canfield Rd. Canfield, OH 44406 from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM.

Scheduled speakers at the October 25th meeting are: Ohio State Representative Bob Hagan, Dr. Ted Voneida (neurobiology), Dr. Ray Beiersdorfer, Ph.D, professor of geology. Dr. Voneida and Dr. Beiersdorfer will speak about geology and chemicals that are vented at fracked wells and the adverse effects they have on the environment and health.

“If you care about the park and our surrounding area, we urge you to please come and hear the speakers and voice your concerns to stop fracking from destroying Mill Creek Park. For the residents who live near the park, this is a matter of keeping drilling rigs out of their residential living space. Fracking and related processes jeopardize the public health and safety and are not in the public interest. To permit fracking related drilling near homes, schools, parks, cemeteries, or forests is simply unconscionable and must be stopped. Evidence that some officials are not protecting the public interest is the astonishing news that a fracking well has been permitted about a mile from a nuclear facility in Shippingport, PA, “ said Lynn Anderson, co-founder of the Facebook group Guardians of Mill Creek Parkhttp://www.facebook.com/groups/guardiansmillcreek/.

Frackfree Mahoning Valley says it is important that park commissioners and the public fully understand the high risk of leaks, spills, mechanical failures, drinking water contamination, and earthquakes associated with fracking and related processes. Even before fracking ramps up in this area, there have been accidents, including the 5-mile long so-called “brine” waste spill in Fowler and the fish kill in Brookfield.